Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Eagle Mountain Land Exchange, Riverside County, CA, 47668-47670 [2014-19239]

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47668
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 157 / Thursday, August 14, 2014 / Notices
A copy of the decisions may
be obtained from: Bureau of Land
Management, Alaska State Office, 222
West Seventh Avenue, #13, Anchorage,
AK 99513–7504.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The
BLM by phone at 907–271–5960 or by
email at blm_ak_akso_public_room@
blm.gov. Persons who use a
Telecommunications Device for the Deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339
to contact the BLM during normal
business hours. In addition, the FIRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
to leave a message or question with the
BLM. The BLM will reply during
normal business hours.
ADDRESSES:
Christy Favorite,
Land Law Examiner, Adjudication Services
Section.
[FR Doc. 2014–19215 Filed 8–13–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–JA–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[F–14848–A and F–14848–A2; LLAK944000–
L14100000–HY0000–P]
Alaska Native Claims Selection
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Decision Approving
Lands for Conveyance.
AGENCY:
As required by 43 CFR
2650.7(d), notice is hereby given that an
appealable decision will be issued by
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
to Chefarnrmute, Incorporated. The
decision approves the surface estate in
the lands described below for
conveyance pursuant to the Alaska
Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C.
1601, et seq.). The subsurface estate in
these lands will be conveyed to Calista
Corporation when the surface estate is
conveyed to Chefarnrmute,
Incorporated.
The lands are in the vicinity of
Chefornak, Alaska, and are located in:
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
Seward Meridian, Alaska
T. 6 N., R. 78 W.,
Secs. 29 and 30.
Containing approximately 1,167 acres.
T. 6 N., R. 79 W.,
Sec. 25.
Containing approximately 320 acres.
Total aggregating approximately 1,487
acres.
Notice of the decision will also be
published once a week for four
consecutive weeks in the Delta
Discovery.
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[FR Doc. 2014–19216 Filed 8–13–14; 8:45 am]
Land Policy and Management Act of
1976 (FLPMA), and in response to the
May 10, 2011, Order of the United
States District Court for the Central
District of California, the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM), Palm Springs
South Coast Field Office, Palm Springs,
California, will prepare a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
addressing deficiencies identified by the
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the
1997 EIS for the Eagle Mountain
Landfill and Recycling Center Project.
DATES: This notice initiates the public
scoping process for the Supplemental
EIS. Comments on issues may be
submitted in writing until September
15, 2014. The date(s) and location(s) of
any scoping meetings will be
announced at least 15 days in advance
through the local news media and the
BLM Web site at: www.blm.gov/ca/st/
en/fo/palmsprings.html. In order to be
included in the Draft Supplemental EIS,
all comments must be received prior to
the close of the scoping period or 15
days after the last public meeting,
whichever is later. The BLM will
provide additional opportunities for
public participation upon publication of
the Draft Supplemental EIS.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
related to the Supplemental EIS by any
of the following methods:
• Web site: www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/
palmsprings.html
• Email: blm_ca_palm_springs_
fo_email@blm.gov
• Fax: 760–833–7199
• Mail: Palm Springs South Coast Field
Office, Attn: John Kalish, 1201 Bird
Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262
Documents pertinent to this notice
may be examined at this address during
regular business hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:30
p.m.) Monday through Friday, except
holidays.
BILLING CODE 4310–JA–P
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Any party claiming a property
interest in the lands affected by the
decision may appeal the decision in
accordance with the requirements of 43
CFR part 4 within the following time
limits:
1. Unknown parties, parties unable to
be located after reasonable efforts have
been expended to locate, parties who
fail or refuse to sign their return receipt,
and parties who receive a copy of the
decision by regular mail which is not
certified, return receipt requested, shall
have until September 15, 2014 to file an
appeal.
2. Parties receiving service of the
decision by certified mail shall have 30
days from the date of receipt to file an
appeal.
Parties who do not file an appeal in
accordance with the requirements of 43
CFR part 4 shall be deemed to have
waived their rights. Notices of appeal
transmitted by electronic means, such as
facsimile or email will not be accepted
as timely filed.
ADDRESSES: A copy of the decision may
be obtained from: Bureau of Land
Management, Alaska State Office, 222
West Seventh Avenue, #13, Anchorage,
AK 99513–7504.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: The
BLM by phone at 907–271–5960 or by
email at blm_ak_akso_public_room@
blm.gov. Persons who use a
Telecommunications Device for the Deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339
to contact the BLM during normal
business hours. In addition, the FIRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
to leave a message or question with the
BLM. The BLM will reply during
normal business hours.
DATES:
Judy A. Kelley,
Land Law Examiner, Branch of Adjudication.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLCA930000; L14300000; FM0000; CACA
25594, CACA 31926 and CACA 30070]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a
Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement for the Eagle Mountain Land
Exchange, Riverside County, CA
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.
AGENCY:
In compliance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, as amended (NEPA), the Federal
SUMMARY:
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Sfmt 4703
Thomas Gey, Realty Specialist, BLM
California Desert District Office,
telephone 951–697–5352; address 22835
Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno
Valley, CA 92553–9046; email
tgey@blm.gov.
Contact Mr. Gey to have your name
added to our mailing list. Persons who
use a telecommunications device for the
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–
800–877–8339 to contact Mr. Gey
during normal business hours. The FIRS
is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week, to leave a message or question for
Mr. Gey. You will receive a reply during
normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 1989,
Kaiser Eagle Mountain, Inc. (Kaiser) and
E:\FR\FM\14AUN1.SGM
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tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 157 / Thursday, August 14, 2014 / Notices
Mine Reclamation Corporation (MRC)
proposed to develop the Eagle Mountain
Landfill and Recycling Project in the
Eagle Mountains in Riverside County,
California. The landfill project, which
has since been abandoned, would have
involved a Class III nonhazardous solid
waste landfill in and around the Eagle
Mountain Mine and the renovation of
the nearby Eagle Mountain townsite to
support landfill operations. The
proposed landfill, support facilities, and
open space buffer areas would have
required approximately 4,654 acres of
land, including private land owned by
Kaiser, as well as approximately 3,481
acres of scattered parcels of BLMmanaged public lands within the project
area.
To facilitate the landfill project,
Kaiser proposed in 1989 a land
exchange to acquire the public lands in
the project area and acquire the federal
reversionary interest in the Eagle
Mountain townsite. Additionally, Kaiser
applied for two rights-of-way (ROW) to
use an existing railroad to transport
solid waste to the landfill, as well as an
existing road for purposes associated
with the landfill project. The proposed
land exchange, which was completed in
1999, involved the conveyance of 3,481
acres of public land to Kaiser, much of
which was previously disturbed,
unpatented mining and mill site claims
held by Kaiser. In exchange, in a deed
recorded in Riverside County on
October 13, 1999, Kaiser conveyed 2,846
acres of land into public ownership,
which included habitat for the desert
tortoise (a federally threatened species)
and habitat supporting the desert
pupfish, and the Yuma clapper rail (a
federally endangered species). Kaiser
also requested that the BLM release any
remaining interests of the United States
(U.S.) in the Eagle Mountain townsite.
The existing railroad was previously
authorized in 1955 under Private Law
790 for transporting iron ore from the
Eagle Mountain Mine to Ferrum
Junction, just northeast of the Salton
Sea. The Eagle Mountain townsite was
conveyed to Kaiser Steel Corporation in
1955 pursuant to Private Law 790, but
the U.S. retained a reversionary interest
in the land. Kaiser also sought, and
subsequently received, approvals for the
landfill project from Riverside County
for a zoning change, specific plan and
solid waste facilties permit.
The BLM and Riverside County
prepared a joint EIS/Environmental
Impact Report (EIR), which was released
for public review and comment in 1992.
The BLM issued a Record of Decision
(ROD) approving the exchange and
associated ROWs on October 20, 1993.
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Appeals were filed with the Interior
Board of Land Appeals (IBLA) and three
lawsuits were filed in State court in
1992 challenging the adequacy of the
EIR under the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA). In September 1994,
a State court found the 1992 EIR to be
inadequate and required further
environmental review by Riverside
County. The BLM subsequently
requested the IBLA remand the case
back to the BLM to allow preparation of
a new joint EIS/EIR.
After circulating a new draft EIS/EIR
on the Project, the BLM and Riverside
County released a new final joint EIS/
EIR in January of 1997. In December of
1999, after legal challenges to the
validity of the EIR under State law were
ultimately unsuccessful, the Riverside
County Department of Environmental
Health and the California Integrated
Waste Management Board approved
final permits for the landfill project.
The BLM approved the land exchange
in a ROD dated September 25, 1997, and
issued ROWs over public lands in 1998.
Several parties protested the BLM’s
decision and filed appeals with the
IBLA.
On October 13, 1999, after the IBLA
affirmed the BLM’s EIS and ROD
approving the exchange, the BLM
patented approximately 3,481 acres of
public land to Kaiser and conveyed the
federal reversionary interest in the Eagle
Mountain townsite to Kaiser.
Kaiser reciprocated by issuing to the
U.S. a grant deed for 2,846 acres of its
private lands and a payment of $20,100,
representing the difference between the
appraised value of the exchange lands.
Subsequent litigation over the BLM’s
1997 decision to approve the land
exchange resulted in a 2005 decision by
the United States District Court for the
Central District of California (District
Court) that certain portions of the
analysis forming the basis for the BLM’s
approval of the land exchange (EIS and
ROD) were flawed under NEPA and
FLPMA.
The District Court found the BLM’s
appraisal was flawed; the BLM’s
determination that the exchange was in
the public interest was not adequately
supported; the EIS was flawed because
the purpose, need, and range of
alternatives were too narrow; and the
analysis of the impacts of the Project on
bighorn sheep and eutrophication was
inadequate.
The District Court set aside the land
exchange pending the BLM preparation
of a new EIS and ROD consistent with
the Court’s Order. Subsequent appeals
resulted in a May 19, 2010, opinion by
the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,
which partially reversed and partially
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Sfmt 4703
47669
affirmed the District Court’s
determinations. The 9th Ciruit found
the determination that the exchange was
in the public interest was adequately
supported and the EIS adequately
addressed the impacts of the Project on
bighorn sheep and reversed the District
Court’s rulings on these issues. The 9th
Circuit affirmed the District Court’s
rulings that the appraisal was flawed
and the EIS was inadequate because the
purpose and need and range of
alternatives were too narrow and the
analysis of eutrophication was
inadequate.
The 9th Circuit’s opinion was
followed by a May 10, 2011, Order by
the District Court setting aside the
ROWs the BLM granted to Kaiser in
1998 and the land exchange the BLM
completed with Kaiser in 1999, pending
preparation by the BLM of a new ROD
and EIS consistent with the 9th Circuit’s
May 19, 2010, opinion. The BLM
intends to prepare a Supplemental EIS,
which, along with any new ROD, will be
provided to the District Court, which
retained jurisdiction to resolve legal
challenges to any new ROD and EIS.
The BLM had delayed preparing a
new ROD and Supplemental EIS
pending the Sanitation Districts of Los
Angeles County (Sanitation Districts)
acquisition of Kaiser’s interest in the
Eagle Mountain Landfill Project.
However, on May 22, 2013, the
Sanitation Districts announced that they
would no longer pursue acquisition of
the Eagle Mountain Landfill Project,
which effectively ended the viability of
the landfill project. On December 19,
2013, the District Court issued an order
directing the parties in the litigation to
commence settlement discussions. No
settlement has been reached; therefore,
the BLM intends to prepare a
Supplemental EIS. Although public
scoping is not required for a
Supplemental EIS, the BLM believes
public scoping is appropriate in this
case. The purpose of the public scoping
process is to determine relevant issues
that will influence the scope of the
environmental analysis and alternatives,
identify reasonably foreseeable uses of
the lands involved, and guide the
process for developing the
Supplemental EIS. Because the landfill
project has been abandoned, the BLM
believes no additional analysis of the
impacts of eutrophication is necessary
in the Supplemental EIS.
The Supplemental EIS will include
any new information not available when
the January 1997 EIS for the now
defunct Eagle Mountain Landfill and
Recycling Project was completed. To the
extent determined through scoping, this
land exchange in the Eagle Mountain
E:\FR\FM\14AUN1.SGM
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tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
47670
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 157 / Thursday, August 14, 2014 / Notices
area may present opportunities to
advance landscape-scale conservation
goals for the BLM and National Park
Service (NPS). The area was removed
from the Park (then a National
Monument) in 1950 to further the
national objective of mining and
development of the steel industry. NPS,
serving as a cooperating agency in the
NEPA process, will assist the BLM
during scoping to assess landscape-scale
conservation opportunities for lands
that support habitat, historic, cultural
and other conservation values.
Concurrent with the scoping process,
NPS plans to evaluate opportunities for
addition to Joshua Tree National Park.
The following preliminary revised
purpose and need for Eagle Mountain
Land Exchange reflects the fact that the
landfill project has been abandoned.
The preliminary revised purpose and
need is to:
1. Protect important habitat and
conservation values, including critical
desert tortoise habitat, habitat for the
Yuma clapper rail and desert pupfish,
and critical upland habitat that is
important for maintaining ecosystem
processes and resources conserved by
Joshua Tree National Park and other
conservation partners;
2. Ensure the permanent conservation
of formerly private inholdings in the
Chuckwalla Desert Wildlife
Management Area, the Dos Palmas Area
of Critical Environmental Concern, and
conservation areas designated in the
Coachella Valley Multiple Species
Habitat Conservation Plan;
3. Reduce the BLM’s costs associated
with managing lands that generally lack
legal and physical access, are
encumbered by mining claims, and
which have been included in mining
operations associated with the Eagle
Mountain Mine;
4. Divest the BLM of the federal
reversionary interest in the Eagle
Mountain townsite, which is not
suitable for management by the BLM;
and
5. Facilitate adaptive re-use of the
Eagle Mountain townsite,
unencumbered by the federal
reversionary interest, including
potentially preserving this area for any
cultural and historic values.
The BLM will use NEPA public
participation requirements to assist the
agency in satisfying the public
involvement requirements under
Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA) (16 U.S.C.
470(f)) pursuant to 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3).
New information about historic and
cultural resources in the project area
will assist the BLM in identifying and
evaluating impacts to such resources in
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16:42 Aug 13, 2014
Jkt 232001
the context of both NEPA and Section
106 of the NHPA.
The BLM will consult with Indian
tribes on a government-to-government
basis in accordance with Executive
Order 13175 and other policies. Tribal
concerns, including impacts on Indian
trust assets and potential impacts to
cultural resources, will be given due
consideration. Federal, State, and local
agencies, along with tribes and other
stakeholders that may be interested in or
affected by the Eagle Mountain Land
Exchange are invited to participate in
the scoping process and, if eligible, may
request or be requested by the BLM to
participate in the development of the
environmental analysis as a cooperating
agency.
Before including your address, phone
number, email address, or other
personal identifying information in your
comment, be advised that your entire
comment—including your personal
identifying information—may be made
publicly available at any time. While
you can ask us in your comment to
withhold from public review your
personal indentifying information, we
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7.
John Kalish,
Field Manager, South Coast Field Office.
[FR Doc. 2014–19239 Filed 8–13–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–40–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLNML00000 L13300000.EP0000
14XL1109AF]
Notice of Extension of Temporary
˜
Closure of Public Land in Dona Ana
County, NM
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), Las Cruces District
Office is extending a temporary closure
of public land in the vicinity of the
˜
Community Pit No. 1 in Dona Ana
County, New Mexico, in order to protect
persons, property, and public lands and
resources.
DATES: This closure will be in effect on
September 15, 2014 and shall remain in
effect for up to 24 months, or until a
final decision is made in the TriCounty
Resource Management Plan (RMP),
whichever is sooner.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Edward Seum, Supervisor, Lands and
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00059
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Minerals, BLM Las Cruces District
Office, 1800 Marquess Street, Las
Cruces, NM 88005; or by telephone at
575–525–4300. Persons who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339
to contact the above individual during
normal business hours. The FIRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
to leave a message or question with the
above individual. You will receive a
reply during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
TriCounty RMP is analyzing a range of
alternatives, including an alternative
that would close the 67.5-acre
Community Pit No.1 until physical
remediation of the high, unconsolidated
walls has occurred, thereby eliminating
the public health and safety risk.
Pursuant to a temporary closure that
published in the Federal Register on
July 23, 2012 (77 FR 43111), the area
was closed to casual use to protect
persons, property, and public land and
resources, and generally to provide for
public safety. The extension of the
closure is needed to reduce or prevent
the opportunity for damage to property,
personal injury, or loss of life in the
vicinity of the Community Pit No. 1 in
˜
Dona Ana County, New Mexico. The
temporary closure and restrictions
applicable to the closure are as follows:
1. The public land to be closed under
this notice is described as:
New Mexico Principal Meridian, New
Mexico
T. 22 S., R. 1 E.,
Sec. 19, SW1⁄4NW1⁄4SE1⁄4,
E1⁄2E1⁄2SW1⁄4SW1⁄4SE1⁄4, E1⁄2SW1⁄4SE1⁄4,
S1⁄2N1⁄2SE1⁄4SE1⁄4, S1⁄2SE1⁄4SE1⁄4,
E1⁄2NW1⁄4SW1⁄4SE1⁄4.
Containing 67.5 acres. Any area described
as a half (1/2) of a half (1/2) is based on the
proper subdivision of section in accordance
with the Manual of Surveying Instructions.
All public use, including casual use,
is prohibited on this 67.5-acre parcel.
Casual use is defined as any short-term,
non-commercial activity which does not
noticeably damage or disturb the public
land, resources, or improvements.
Closure of this parcel is a consequence
of unsafe conditions related to past
mining resulting in steep high walls in
excess of 150 feet, abrupt precipices and
ledges, and loose unconsolidated walls
of rock.
2. This closure does not affect the
ability of local, State, or Federal officials
in the performance of their duties in the
area.
3. This Notice will be posted along
the public roads where this closure is in
effect.
E:\FR\FM\14AUN1.SGM
14AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 157 (Thursday, August 14, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47668-47670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-19239]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLCA930000; L14300000; FM0000; CACA 25594, CACA 31926 and CACA 30070]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement for the Eagle Mountain Land Exchange, Riverside County, CA
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, as amended (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of
1976 (FLPMA), and in response to the May 10, 2011, Order of the United
States District Court for the Central District of California, the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Palm Springs South Coast Field Office,
Palm Springs, California, will prepare a Supplemental Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) addressing deficiencies identified by the 9th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the 1997 EIS for the Eagle Mountain
Landfill and Recycling Center Project.
DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process for the
Supplemental EIS. Comments on issues may be submitted in writing until
September 15, 2014. The date(s) and location(s) of any scoping meetings
will be announced at least 15 days in advance through the local news
media and the BLM Web site at: www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/palmsprings.html. In order to be included in the Draft Supplemental
EIS, all comments must be received prior to the close of the scoping
period or 15 days after the last public meeting, whichever is later.
The BLM will provide additional opportunities for public participation
upon publication of the Draft Supplemental EIS.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to the Supplemental EIS by
any of the following methods:
Web site: www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/palmsprings.html Email: blm_ca_palm_springs_fo_email@blm.gov Fax: 760-833-7199
Mail: Palm Springs South Coast Field Office, Attn: John
Kalish, 1201 Bird Center Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262
Documents pertinent to this notice may be examined at this address
during regular business hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) Monday through
Friday, except holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas Gey, Realty Specialist, BLM
California Desert District Office, telephone 951-697-5352; address
22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553-9046; email
tgey@blm.gov.
Contact Mr. Gey to have your name added to our mailing list.
Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call
the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to
contact Mr. Gey during normal business hours. The FIRS is available 24
hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question for Mr. Gey.
You will receive a reply during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 1989, Kaiser Eagle Mountain, Inc.
(Kaiser) and
[[Page 47669]]
Mine Reclamation Corporation (MRC) proposed to develop the Eagle
Mountain Landfill and Recycling Project in the Eagle Mountains in
Riverside County, California. The landfill project, which has since
been abandoned, would have involved a Class III nonhazardous solid
waste landfill in and around the Eagle Mountain Mine and the renovation
of the nearby Eagle Mountain townsite to support landfill operations.
The proposed landfill, support facilities, and open space buffer areas
would have required approximately 4,654 acres of land, including
private land owned by Kaiser, as well as approximately 3,481 acres of
scattered parcels of BLM-managed public lands within the project area.
To facilitate the landfill project, Kaiser proposed in 1989 a land
exchange to acquire the public lands in the project area and acquire
the federal reversionary interest in the Eagle Mountain townsite.
Additionally, Kaiser applied for two rights-of-way (ROW) to use an
existing railroad to transport solid waste to the landfill, as well as
an existing road for purposes associated with the landfill project. The
proposed land exchange, which was completed in 1999, involved the
conveyance of 3,481 acres of public land to Kaiser, much of which was
previously disturbed, unpatented mining and mill site claims held by
Kaiser. In exchange, in a deed recorded in Riverside County on October
13, 1999, Kaiser conveyed 2,846 acres of land into public ownership,
which included habitat for the desert tortoise (a federally threatened
species) and habitat supporting the desert pupfish, and the Yuma
clapper rail (a federally endangered species). Kaiser also requested
that the BLM release any remaining interests of the United States
(U.S.) in the Eagle Mountain townsite.
The existing railroad was previously authorized in 1955 under
Private Law 790 for transporting iron ore from the Eagle Mountain Mine
to Ferrum Junction, just northeast of the Salton Sea. The Eagle
Mountain townsite was conveyed to Kaiser Steel Corporation in 1955
pursuant to Private Law 790, but the U.S. retained a reversionary
interest in the land. Kaiser also sought, and subsequently received,
approvals for the landfill project from Riverside County for a zoning
change, specific plan and solid waste facilties permit.
The BLM and Riverside County prepared a joint EIS/Environmental
Impact Report (EIR), which was released for public review and comment
in 1992. The BLM issued a Record of Decision (ROD) approving the
exchange and associated ROWs on October 20, 1993.
Appeals were filed with the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA)
and three lawsuits were filed in State court in 1992 challenging the
adequacy of the EIR under the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA). In September 1994, a State court found the 1992 EIR to be
inadequate and required further environmental review by Riverside
County. The BLM subsequently requested the IBLA remand the case back to
the BLM to allow preparation of a new joint EIS/EIR.
After circulating a new draft EIS/EIR on the Project, the BLM and
Riverside County released a new final joint EIS/EIR in January of 1997.
In December of 1999, after legal challenges to the validity of the EIR
under State law were ultimately unsuccessful, the Riverside County
Department of Environmental Health and the California Integrated Waste
Management Board approved final permits for the landfill project.
The BLM approved the land exchange in a ROD dated September 25,
1997, and issued ROWs over public lands in 1998. Several parties
protested the BLM's decision and filed appeals with the IBLA.
On October 13, 1999, after the IBLA affirmed the BLM's EIS and ROD
approving the exchange, the BLM patented approximately 3,481 acres of
public land to Kaiser and conveyed the federal reversionary interest in
the Eagle Mountain townsite to Kaiser.
Kaiser reciprocated by issuing to the U.S. a grant deed for 2,846
acres of its private lands and a payment of $20,100, representing the
difference between the appraised value of the exchange lands.
Subsequent litigation over the BLM's 1997 decision to approve the
land exchange resulted in a 2005 decision by the United States District
Court for the Central District of California (District Court) that
certain portions of the analysis forming the basis for the BLM's
approval of the land exchange (EIS and ROD) were flawed under NEPA and
FLPMA.
The District Court found the BLM's appraisal was flawed; the BLM's
determination that the exchange was in the public interest was not
adequately supported; the EIS was flawed because the purpose, need, and
range of alternatives were too narrow; and the analysis of the impacts
of the Project on bighorn sheep and eutrophication was inadequate.
The District Court set aside the land exchange pending the BLM
preparation of a new EIS and ROD consistent with the Court's Order.
Subsequent appeals resulted in a May 19, 2010, opinion by the 9th U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals, which partially reversed and partially
affirmed the District Court's determinations. The 9th Ciruit found the
determination that the exchange was in the public interest was
adequately supported and the EIS adequately addressed the impacts of
the Project on bighorn sheep and reversed the District Court's rulings
on these issues. The 9th Circuit affirmed the District Court's rulings
that the appraisal was flawed and the EIS was inadequate because the
purpose and need and range of alternatives were too narrow and the
analysis of eutrophication was inadequate.
The 9th Circuit's opinion was followed by a May 10, 2011, Order by
the District Court setting aside the ROWs the BLM granted to Kaiser in
1998 and the land exchange the BLM completed with Kaiser in 1999,
pending preparation by the BLM of a new ROD and EIS consistent with the
9th Circuit's May 19, 2010, opinion. The BLM intends to prepare a
Supplemental EIS, which, along with any new ROD, will be provided to
the District Court, which retained jurisdiction to resolve legal
challenges to any new ROD and EIS.
The BLM had delayed preparing a new ROD and Supplemental EIS
pending the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County (Sanitation
Districts) acquisition of Kaiser's interest in the Eagle Mountain
Landfill Project. However, on May 22, 2013, the Sanitation Districts
announced that they would no longer pursue acquisition of the Eagle
Mountain Landfill Project, which effectively ended the viability of the
landfill project. On December 19, 2013, the District Court issued an
order directing the parties in the litigation to commence settlement
discussions. No settlement has been reached; therefore, the BLM intends
to prepare a Supplemental EIS. Although public scoping is not required
for a Supplemental EIS, the BLM believes public scoping is appropriate
in this case. The purpose of the public scoping process is to determine
relevant issues that will influence the scope of the environmental
analysis and alternatives, identify reasonably foreseeable uses of the
lands involved, and guide the process for developing the Supplemental
EIS. Because the landfill project has been abandoned, the BLM believes
no additional analysis of the impacts of eutrophication is necessary in
the Supplemental EIS.
The Supplemental EIS will include any new information not available
when the January 1997 EIS for the now defunct Eagle Mountain Landfill
and Recycling Project was completed. To the extent determined through
scoping, this land exchange in the Eagle Mountain
[[Page 47670]]
area may present opportunities to advance landscape-scale conservation
goals for the BLM and National Park Service (NPS). The area was removed
from the Park (then a National Monument) in 1950 to further the
national objective of mining and development of the steel industry.
NPS, serving as a cooperating agency in the NEPA process, will assist
the BLM during scoping to assess landscape-scale conservation
opportunities for lands that support habitat, historic, cultural and
other conservation values. Concurrent with the scoping process, NPS
plans to evaluate opportunities for addition to Joshua Tree National
Park. The following preliminary revised purpose and need for Eagle
Mountain Land Exchange reflects the fact that the landfill project has
been abandoned. The preliminary revised purpose and need is to:
1. Protect important habitat and conservation values, including
critical desert tortoise habitat, habitat for the Yuma clapper rail and
desert pupfish, and critical upland habitat that is important for
maintaining ecosystem processes and resources conserved by Joshua Tree
National Park and other conservation partners;
2. Ensure the permanent conservation of formerly private inholdings
in the Chuckwalla Desert Wildlife Management Area, the Dos Palmas Area
of Critical Environmental Concern, and conservation areas designated in
the Coachella Valley Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan;
3. Reduce the BLM's costs associated with managing lands that
generally lack legal and physical access, are encumbered by mining
claims, and which have been included in mining operations associated
with the Eagle Mountain Mine;
4. Divest the BLM of the federal reversionary interest in the Eagle
Mountain townsite, which is not suitable for management by the BLM; and
5. Facilitate adaptive re-use of the Eagle Mountain townsite,
unencumbered by the federal reversionary interest, including
potentially preserving this area for any cultural and historic values.
The BLM will use NEPA public participation requirements to assist
the agency in satisfying the public involvement requirements under
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) (16 U.S.C.
470(f)) pursuant to 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3). New information about historic
and cultural resources in the project area will assist the BLM in
identifying and evaluating impacts to such resources in the context of
both NEPA and Section 106 of the NHPA.
The BLM will consult with Indian tribes on a government-to-
government basis in accordance with Executive Order 13175 and other
policies. Tribal concerns, including impacts on Indian trust assets and
potential impacts to cultural resources, will be given due
consideration. Federal, State, and local agencies, along with tribes
and other stakeholders that may be interested in or affected by the
Eagle Mountain Land Exchange are invited to participate in the scoping
process and, if eligible, may request or be requested by the BLM to
participate in the development of the environmental analysis as a
cooperating agency.
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, be advised that
your entire comment--including your personal identifying information--
may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in
your comment to withhold from public review your personal indentifying
information, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Authority: 40 CFR 1501.7.
John Kalish,
Field Manager, South Coast Field Office.
[FR Doc. 2014-19239 Filed 8-13-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P